The Farmington student section cheers as the Tigers’ girls hockey team takes to the ice at the start of the second period of a quarterfinal game against Andover in the State Girls Hockey Tournament at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

Minnesota high school hockey tournament in St. Paul. Auto Show in Minneapolis. Wild and Timberwolves games.

Lots of people, lots of germs, and lots and lots of “hand sanitizing stations.”

But no freaking out, and no coronavirus cancellations.

At least not at major event venues in the Twin Cities, where there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19, the novel strain of coronavirus that is spreading across the globe and nation — and disrupting large gatherings as it does.

Amazon, Google and Microsoft are among large employers in the Seattle area, where the death toll reached 11 Thursday afternoon, canceling conferences and telling workers there to stay home Thursday. In Switzerland, public health officials canceled the Geneva Auto Show and all gatherings larger than 1,000 people after 15 confirmed cases. (The number has since grown to 100 cases.)

But health officials here aren’t urging such restrictions, so our auto show, which starts Saturday at the Minneapolis Convention Center, is on.

“We’re full-steam ahead,” said Scott Lambert, president of the Greater Metro Auto Dealers Association, which puts on the Minneapolis Auto Show. “It was really a non-decision. There’s no outbreak in Minnesota, and we can’t shelter in place for something that hasn’t happened.”

The Pioneer Press spoke to officials from several major event locations in the Twin Cities Thursday, and they all appear to be on the same page: They’re paying attention, taking direction from the CDC and Minnesota Department of Health, increasing their own cleanliness, and — this one is big — urging people who come to their events to do the same.

And while officials said they have received few, if any, inquiries from patrons directly, it’s on their minds.

The websites for the St. Paul RiverCentre, Xcel Energy Center and Minneapolis Convention Center venues all have specific and nearly identical pages devoted coronavirus questions. The Minnesota State High School League, which oversees the high school hockey tournament underway this week at the Xcel, as well as a number of other tournaments coming up, issued a statement saying it’s in “consistent communication with the management of the venues.”

Officials with the Ordway Center for Performing Arts in St. Paul and the Minnesota Orchestra in Minneapolis said they have nearly daily briefings that have led to frequent behind-the-scenes planning, but event-goers won’t notice any major changes.

But astute observers might notice a few things being done differently.

NO MORE SAUERKRAUT?

Many venues have upped the frequency of cleaning and sanitizing by workers.

Doorknobs, hand railings, eating areas and bathrooms are among the places getting more frequent wipedowns with disinfectant, several officials said.

Lambert said on Thursday as the Auto Show was getting set up, he spotted a few subtle differences that the convention center’s catering service has implemented.

“All the straws are wrapped, and I just noticed there are no coffee stirrers,” Lambert said on the phone as he walked the floor. For folks getting dogs and brats, pump dispensers of ketchup and mustard remain an option, but common food tubs with spoons — where condiments such as relish, chopped onions and sauerkraut are typically offered — are out, he said.

SITUATION COULD CHANGE

Ordway President Jamie Grant said he worked in Toronto in 2003, when the SARS virus killed one woman and resulted in more than 200 people being sickened.

“One of the things I learned from that experience was how important it is to stay up on the latest information,” Grant said. “As of me speaking to you now, at 5:01 p.m. Thursday, my information is that everything is a go, but I can also tell you that new information can always change things.”

Dave Orrick reports on state government and politics from the Pioneer Press' Capitol Bureau. When the occasion demands, he's been known to cover topics ranging from hunting to golf. He lives in St. Paul with his wife and son.

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